Thursday, September 24, 2009

Below is a reader’s response that I was copied on to Andy Willis’ comment in the Globe today that: “Courtesy of Nortel Networks, Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff is beginning to forge an industrial policy that stands in stark contrast to the Conservative's hands-off approach to business.

The reader writes:

Andrew, in the Globe this morning you describe a government that through the double taxation of Income Trusts caused investor losses in excess of $35bn, triggered a tidal wave of foreign takeovers of Income Trusts, a change in ownership that threatens both the Canadian tax base and our security in energy and raw materials, and is forcing trusts to go through an expensive, time consuming conversion back to corporations, as having a "hands off approach to business"? Are you out of your mind!? Harper is the most duplicitous, conniving idealogue we've ever had as PM. I guess he controls the Globe too.

EVENTS

Income Trust Halloween VigilThanks to all who participated in both the Ottawa and Calgary vigils to mark the anniversary of the announcement.

WE"D LIKE SOME ANSWERS

As you well know, the ‘income trust thing’ has grown beyond the
question of whether fair taxes are paid on income from trusts. It’s
become a giant dirty snowball, and as it rolls forward it accumulates
more and more bulk. There are so many unanswered questions. Let's list a few and invite our "Accountable" government and our free press to provide some much-needed answers.

It is said “Trusts are inefficient use of capital. Why?” Two
related questions are ‘Whose money is it, anyway?’, and ‘Do Canadian
investors have a free and efficient market?’

How can information that is already in the public domain at SEDAR
make for a state secret? How could such information be used to harm
the Canadian national interest? And who would cause the harm?

Why won’t the Canadian media investigate the falsehoods and
misrepresentations told by the Minister of Finance to a committee of
Parliament? Was the Minister in contempt of Parliament?

Why won’t the Canadian media report (a) government tax revenues
gained from BCE in 2006 when BCE was a corporation to (b) government
tax revenues that would be gained in 2007 from BCE, if BCE had been
allowed to proceed to a trust, and (c) government tax revenues that
will be gained in 2007 from BCE, when BCE ownership has been carved
up as 45% foreign ownership and 55% large Canadian pension fund
ownership?